Til the last heartbeat
by Awatere11
Summary: SD4Ianto ... this is for you. The two boys have been together for so long, sleeping more in the same bed as each in their own. Now that they are in this comfortable life it is time to officially move in together and declare themselves a couple. But ... there is angst, pain and ters before bedtime ... hopefully in the one bed. Rated for smut
1. Chapter 1

1

The young couple walked along the shoreline in bare feet and rolled up pants. One had copper coloured hair and was toned, the other, a few years younger, had dark locks. It was spring, the water still cold, but refreshing nonetheless. Each wore a light jacket to ward off the breezes that were just enough to convince everyone else to stay indoors. They had the beach to themselves.

They had been looking forward to this weekend away for a month and nothing was going to spoil their enjoyment of the sandy beach and salty air. Even the call of seagulls was almost music to their ears. This weekend trip had been planned for months and it had been everything they had thought it would be and more.

They had been walking hand in hand in companionable silence for ten minutes when the copper haired one suddenly stopped, smiled and said, "This weekend has been amazing. I don't want to leave."

"Neither do I," the other replied, as one hand squeezed the other.

"But we have to."

"We can always come back."

"I like your way of thinking," Gii said and pulled other beachcomber into a hug.

Takumi returned the hug with equal enthusiasm.

"I…," both began.

"You first," Takumi said.

Gii took a breath. _This is crazy, he thought. We've been together for years. I shouldn't still be this nervous around him. Okay, now or never_. "I've wanted to ask you this for some time now."

 _Oh, God,_ Takumi thought.

Gii put his hands on Takumi's hips and pulled him close. Takumi gripped Gii's shoulders.

"Takumi, I want you to move in with me. Officially. Will you?"

Takumi pulled Gii into a tight embrace. He buried his head in his boyfriend's neck.

"I mean, you practically live there already," Gii was saying. "So, what'll it be?"

Takumi lifted his head and gazed into Gii's eyes. "Of course I will. It's not like I have much more to bring over anyway."

He grinned. "I think I've been dropping hints for awhile now, by bringing more things over the past few weeks."

"I've wanted to ask for a long time now," Gii admitted. "It'll save us both time running back and forth across town."

"I don't know what took you so long," Takumi joked. "Pretty soon I would have had to move in without being asked."

Gii laughed. "You could have you know."

"Really?"

"I would have let you."

"I should have. We could have been having sex every night for months now. We're idiots!"

"No, we're just terribly old fashioned. We can blame our families for that."

Takumi looked up and down the beach. "Ssshh! Don't let anyone else know that!"

"Okay," Gii agreed. "It'll be our secret. So, what did you want to ask?"

Takumi rubbed his hands up and down Gii's arms as a stiff breeze cut across the beach.

"Oh nothing," he said, "just where you wanted to go for dinner tonight."

He took Gii's hand in his and headed back up the beach. "For a second there, I thought you were going to ask me to marry you."

Gii stopped walking. He raised his eyebrows.

"The weekend isn't over yet," he said. They both laughed and resumed walking along the shoreline.

They didn't notice the wind picking up speed.

They had already weathered the storm.

Right?

.

.

.

.

.

The couple arrived at Gii's apartment late and exhausted after a day out in the sun. They stripped off their clothes, climbed into bed and were asleep within minutes.

They had made a reservation to go to the new paintball center the following day and wanted to be well rested.

The local sports complex had been expanded and Gii knew the owner fairly well, as he had been a regular at the gym for years. After picking up the necessary gear, it took nearly an hour of chasing each other around the field to empty all the pellets in the guns. Takumi proved to be more adept at firing; Gii was almost completely covered in yellow paint. Gii raised his arms in surrender and was heading towards Takumi and the exit when Takumi shot him once more square in the chest.

"Fuck!" Gii yelled. "That hurt!"

Takumi took his goggles off as Gii arrived next to him. "Sorry, babe, I swear that was the last shot I have."

Gii removed his eyewear and ran a dirty hand through his hair. "Shit," he said. "This is going to take forever to wash out. We're never coming here again."

Takumi gently swatted Gii on the ass and they made their way to depose of their equipment and clean up. "Yes we are. I'll even let you win next time."

"Promises, promises."

Takumi rolled his eyes. "Come on. I'll buy you something to eat."

At the food shack next to the sport complex, Gii was certain there wouldn't be anything of nutritional value on the menu. He let Takumi order while he sat at one of the few empty outdoor tables.

Takumi came back with a tray of oversized chili dogs, a large plate of fries and two of the largest containers of soda Gii had ever seen. Gii could tell by the look on his face Takumi was quite pleased with himself.

"You really expect me to eat this shit?" Gii asked.

"Oh come on," Takumi answered back as he placed the tray on the table and sat across from his boyfriend. "Where's your sense of adventure?"

"You killed it along with my dignity on the paintball field," Gii said, as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Well, this place doesn't serve the five star meals you're used to. Look at the presentation.

Grease encased in fresh baked bread. I figured you could use a little diversity on your palette."

Gii laughed. "That's what I love about you. You can make junk food into a work of art."

"Just eat," Takumi mumbled, as he took a huge bite of his masterpiece. Gii picked up the other dog and had to admit it did taste pretty good.

"My arteries are clogging already," he snarked, taking a sip of his drink.

"By the way, you can reclaim your dignity tonight however you want." Takumi grinned.

Gii almost chocked on his drink.


	2. Chapter 2

2

Gii's place was closer to Iko and Mari's; they planned to spend the night there so they could take their time getting ready the following morning. They each had enough personal items at the others home so they didn't have to stop by Takumi's apartment on the way.

They never spoke of the unintentional way they were almost moving in with each other. Things were perfect the way they were for now.

As soon as they got in the door, Takumi said he was going to take a shower and headed for the bathroom. Gii went into the bedroom, looked at the bed and suddenly remembered Takumi's words from earlier about reclaiming his dignity. When he heard the rush of water from the showerhead, he formed an idea. His twitching cock was in agreement. He grabbed the item from his dresser that he purchased the other day.

He could hear Takumi humming to himself under the spray of water. Yet another adorable habit he was growing quite fond of. He took his clothes off and silently treaded to the bathroom.

Takumi was oblivious. Steam was already increasing the heat in the room. Gii carefully opened the door and stepped into the stall.

"Jesus!" Takumi almost screamed. "You could have warned me."

"Why? I'm taking back what's mine." He grabbed Takumi and pushed him against the wall.

"You told me I could."

"Wha…," Takumi began. Then he recalled what he had told Gii that afternoon. He grinned and decided it would be fun to let Gii have his way with him. He loved that they were versatile with regard to their sex life. It was a wonderful balance and he knew he was lucky to have found someone who was willing to both give and receive.

When Gii leaned in and kissed him hard, Takumi succumbed and let him take charge.

"I'm going to take you….and take you hard," Gii rasped, and turned Takumi around. He kissed and licked his way down Takumi's back. His lover's moans spurring him on.

When Gii spread Takumi's cheeks and began probing his entrance with his tongue, Takumi let out another loud moan. "God, that's perfect," he said. "Don't stop."

"Babe, I'm just getting started," was the reply he got. Gii went back to his task, only this time he also wrapped a hand around Takumi's very hard cock and tugged. He steadied the younger man by placing his other hand on Takumi's hip.

After another few minutes, Gii stood up and pulled Takumi around for another searing kiss.

"Don't think I can last much longer," Takumi said when they broke apart. "I need you in me now. Just fuck me, please!"

"Oh, I love it when you beg," Gii said. He opened the door just wide enough to grab the waterproof lube. He bought it a week ago and was glad they were finally going to use it. And if he had his way, they'd need to get more. Takumi took his own cock in hand and began stroking himself.

Gii batted his hand away.

"No," he said, "I want you to come just by me fucking you."

Takumi expelled a deep breath.

Gii quickly coated his cock and in one smooth move pushed into his lover.

"Oh god," Takumi groaned. "Fuck me hard."

Gii grabbed Takumi's hips and moved fast and furiously. In no time at all Takumi was spurting on the wall. Gii wasn't much farther behind, coming deep within his lover.

A few seconds later, Gii turned off the water, which had now become cold. He buried his face into the back of Takumi's neck and whispered "I love you" in between catching his breath.

Takumi turned around, pushed Gii's hair off his face and then smiled.

"I love you, too," he said.

Stepping out of the stall, they dried off and silently walked hand in hand to the bedroom.

They climbed into bed, Gii wrapping Takumi in his arms. "Yup," he said. "Dignity reclaimed."

Takumi chuckled, kissed Gii's shoulder and pulled the covering over both of them. Sleep claimed them soon after.

The next morning, after another round of slow and easy lovemaking, both men were basking in the afterglow.

"You're amazing," Takumi finally said, as he propped onto his elbow.

Gii leaned over and gave Takumi a quick kiss. "You aren't so bad yourself."

Takumi turned to leave the bed. "Need a shower now," he said.

Gii pulled Takumi to prevent him from getting away. "Wait a few minutes and I'll join you."

"That's the best idea you've had so far today." He paused. "Wait. Second best. Waking me up via a blowjob was the best idea so far."

Takumi turned back to Gii and snuggled close to him. "Oh, by the way, I love you."

"I love you, too," Gii said. "And I'm going to tell you every day."

Takumi smiled, and decided a shower could wait. "I should have told you how I felt as soon as I knew it was true."

"Don't worry about it." Gii rolled on top of Takumi and kissed him thoroughly.

"You better watch it," Takumi said, gently pushing his lover away. "We're going to get stuck to each other."

"Would that be such a bad thing?"

Takumi ran his fingers through Gii's hair. "Nah, guess not."

He pulled Gii in for another searing kiss. He canted his hips up, as both their cocks were reawakening. In the other room, the phone began to ring.

"Ignore it," Takumi said. "Let the machine get it."

As soon as the ringing stopped, the trill of Gii's cell went off.

Takumi groaned. "Damn. Someone really wants to talk to you."

Gii crawled off Takumi and went to retrieve his phone.

"It's Iko," he said, when he saw flipped the device open.

"What?" he said, a little annoyed. Irritation soon turned to shock. He sat on the edge of the bed. "Oh my god."

Takumi scooted over and sat next to him. "I'll be right there."

Gii absentmindedly dropped the phone on the floor.

Takumi took Gii's hand in his.

"What is it?" he asked.

Gii took Takumi into his arms, tears welling in his eyes. He let go, wiped his face, and stood up. Takumi stood up, too and said, "Tell me, you're really scaring me."

"It's Mari," Gii said, his voice shaking. "She was taken to the hospital this morning."

He began pacing around the room.

"Shit," Takumi said. "Is it bad?"

Gii picked up the phone off the floor and began fiddling with it. "Yeah, it is. She had an aneurysm. They don't know if she'll make it."

Takumi sat shocked to silence at the thought of one of their friends in such a dire condition.


	3. Chapter 3

3

Takumi had only been to one other funeral in his life.

His grandfather had passed away when he was in middle school after a long battle with emphysema.

His death was sad, but expected. As for his brother, that was never spoken of and he did not attend. He still hadn't accepted his parent's choice in the matter.

Someone Mari's age wasn't supposed to die.

He wished he could have known her longer.

Everyone was devastated; Mari's parents for losing a child, her sister for losing only sibling and confidant; but mostly Iko, widowed at such a young age, with a two month old.

Takumi spotted Gii talking with his friend.

Iko looked like he hadn't slept at all in the past week. Takumi couldn't imagine what he must be going through; losing the person he planned on spending the rest of his life with.

He turned when he heard someone call his name.

Takumi smiled and leaned down when Iko's mother went to put a kiss on his cheek.

"Thank you for being here, for standing by Gii" She said. "It means a lot to Iko. All of us, actually."

"I know Mari was like a sister to him. I only wish I could have known her better."

"She was really special. I don't know anyone who didn't love her."

Takumi smiled. "If I can do anything…"

She lightly touched his arm. "Just be there for Gii. He's having a really difficult time with this."

Takumi glanced at Gii

He and Iko were talking with a dark haired guy who Takumi quickly figured was Iko's friend Anthony. "I love Gii, Mrs. Cole. I'd do anything for him."

She squeezed his arm affectionately. "How many times have I told you to call me Betty?"

"Sorry….Betty." He smiled at her.

"Oh come here," she said and hugged him tightly.

Takumi saw Gii heading in his direction as Betty went to speak with another family member. Gii took Takumi by the hand, went out into the hallway and gave him a bone crushing hug.

"I'm so glad you're here," Gii said, his eyes welling up again. "I need you to help me get through today."

Takumi wrapped his arms around the other man, reached up and placed a comforting hand on the back of his head. "I'm here, my love. Let it out."

They stood silently for a few minutes until Gii finally let go of the grip he had on Takumi.

"I think I'm okay," he said, "then I break down again."

Takumi wiped the tears from Gii's face. "I know how close you were. How's Iko?"

Gii closed his eyes then slowly opened them while shaking his head. "Numb. He hasn't slept in days. I've barely gotten him to eat."

Gii had been staying with him for the past week. The parents and Mari's family had been taking turns caring for Abby. Today the baby was with Iko's neighbour.

"I can't imagine what he's going through," Takumi said. "To lose the person you love… suddenly like that."

"There really were no symptoms. Although she would get these headaches. She had an appointment last week to get it checked out. I'll always wonder if this could have been prevented."

"From what I've read about aneurysms in the past couple days, not really."

Gii was touched that Takumi had taken the time to do some research. He smiled. "Do you know how amazing you are?"

Takumi grinned back. "Why…..yes, I do. How do you think I snagged you in the first place?"

That made Gii laugh. "Thank you," he said, and gave Takumi a quick kiss.

"What was that for?"

"For making me laugh for the first time in more than a week."

Takumi gripped Gii's arm in a reassuring squeeze. "I'm here for you, Gii. You know that, don't you?"

"Yeah, I do." Gii sighed, "I'm going to spend some time here with him. Do you mind? If you feel weird about staying at mine without me go back to yours. I know you still have your room there and it will only be for a few days, right?"

"Ready to go back in there?"

"Ready as I'll ever be."

Knowing how important the makeshift family was to Gii, Takumi gave him all the space he wanted to spend more time with Iko. Takumi would have been the same way if it were one of his friends.

They were all they had, some of these people had been Gii's friends for most of his life, especially given the estrangement from his family.


	4. Chapter 4

4

Takumi had been busy at work with a new client and was putting in a lot of extra hours with the campaign presentation so he didn't have a whole lot of free time to think about the fact that he and Gii hadn't seen much of each other in the past three weeks.

He thought he'd made it clear to Gii that he could talk to him, that he was there for him. He couldn't understand why Gii hadn't been in contact with him. They used to talk almost every day.

Now it was more like only three or four times per week. Takumi knew Gii had been staying at Iko's the first two weeks after the funeral, and had even cancelled a few dates, and while it bothered him greatly, he let it slide.

It was when Takumi turned the calendar to October it occurred to him that maybe Gii needed a little help in moving on with the grieving process.

In the past two weeks they'd seen each other only three times. Twice they'd shared a meal and then some idle chatter in front of the television. In between Takumi had called Gii several times and each conversation was cut short. The third time was just the other night and when Takumi had asked him when they could resume their regular schedule of seeing each other, Gii had lashed out at him saying something about when he felt like Iko had a better grip on handling things.

" _Look, I know you are still grieving. It's only been a month," Takumi had said._

" _So give me a break," Gii countered._

" _I've given you time. I've hardly seen you lately."_

" _Iko needs me."_

" _So do I."_

 _The rest of the evening had ended in a stalemate._

The next two days at work were hectic with last minute preparations for the presentation.

Takumi was still very pissed at Gii but for the most part didn't show it. Until the client presentation when it was discovered that he'd put the incorrect sales projections on the slideshow. He couldn't believe he messed up something so critical but Peter acknowledged that the figures were wrong and reassured the client of the correct amounts. He promised the adjustments would be made on the copies of the prospectus that would be sent to the investors.

Later that afternoon, Peter took Takumi into his office.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Peter demanded. "You've been busting your ass on this campaign for weeks and have been doing remarkable work. Then you fuck up at the presentation?"

"I…..," Takumi began.

Peter waved him off. "Look. Speaking as your boss, you've been a great addition to the team. You've got the talent to go far at this firm. But as your friend, I can tell something is bothering you. Talk to me."

"As what? Your staff member or your friend?"

Peter laughed at Takumi's sarcasm. "Both. But one at a time."

"Fine," Takumi conceded. "I'm sorry I screwed up today. You know when I'm here; I'm all about the job. It won't happen again."

"Good." Peter scratched his forehead. "Because I have something to tell you."

Takumi tensed for a second. "Oh, no. Don't worry. This is good news. The partners and I agreed that if Demetrious signed the contract today, we would submit your work for an ADDY."

Takumi was shocked. "For real?"

The ADDY awards were the top awards in the advertising industry. "We got the account? An ADDY?"

"Yeah," Peter assured him. "Just the local ADDYS for now, don't go thinking national yet."

He patted Takumi on the knee. "Half a dozen other agencies were hoping to nail the Demetrious account. You should have heard him after you left the meeting. He ran out of superlatives when praising your work."

Takumi began pacing the room. "I can't believe this. Wow this is awesome!"

He stopped moving. "Wait. Then why did you ream me out?"

Peter laughed. "Well, you still screwed up the numbers. And that made us look bad. Fortunately I can bullshit the best of them."

Takumi sighed softly as he rubbed at his head.

Peter grew serious. "That's not like you. You're always really focused when it comes to the work. What's going on in that brilliant head of yours?"

Takumi sighed deeply and sat in one of the chairs facing Peter's desk. Peter sat in the other one.

"Talk to me, bussy," Peter said.

Takumi got directly to the issue at hand. "It's Gii."

"I figured. He was noticeably not there at the monthly feast the other week."

"He's still busy being his friend's keeper. I've seen him a grand total of three times in the past two and a half weeks. And the last time, just the other night, ended in a huge fight.

We haven't spoken since."

"I'm really sorry. You two really seemed to have something solid."

"We do…..did….I don't know anymore."

"You told me once one of the first things that drew you to him was the close bond he had with his friends. Just like ours."

"Yeah, and I totally respect that he's there for Iko after such a tragedy. And I get the whole 'everyone grieves in their own way' thing." He stopped to take a deep breath. Peter didn't say anything, letting him unload at his own pace. "I've been thinking the past two days. He dumped his college boyfriend to go help when his old teacher had a mild heart attack. Then he broke off his last relationship after three years because he didn't want to move away from his friends. Is he choosing his friends over our relationship now?"

"Hmmm. I can see how you would think that," Peter reasoned. "You'll just have to convince him you aren't taking him away from his friends. That he can love them and you."

Takumi huffed. "Easier said than done."

"Takumi, what you have to ask yourself is this. Is he worth it?"

He didn't have to think twice. "Yes. He is."

"Well, then do what you have to do."

Encouraged by the talk with Peter, Takumi went home and thought about how to get a message through to Gii. He was still upset over the fight they had the other night but he loved Gii too much to not make the attempt to keep him in his life.

When Libby got home from working late at the store, she found her roommate on the sofa surrounded by wads of rolled up paper.

"What's going on here?" she asked, as she entered the room.

Takumi lifted his head when he heard her voice.

"Oh, sorry," he said. "I'll clean this up."

"What are you doing?"

"Trying to do something for Gii."

"Why? Aren't you still pissed at him?" She deposited her large purse on the floor and sat next to her friend.

"Well…yeah…,"Takumi admitted. "But I've been feeling like shit for the past two days. I screwed up at work today, then Peter-"

"Wait…," Libby interrupted. "You screwed up at work….what happened? You're the most serious person I know when it comes to their job."

"I know. I am. I told Peter this is the first and last time he'll have to save my ass. I put the wrong sales projections on a slideshow presentation. But it all worked out in the end. The client signed the contract."

"That's good then."

"Yeah, and even better," Takumi shifted in his seat. "The partners are going to nominate my work for an award."

Libby practically fell off the sofa. "Oh my God, that's awesome! Who knew when you started doodling cartoon characters that you'd end up where you are today?"

"Yeah…" He grinned.

"Youngest associate at McIntosh to earn this and all," he said proudly, the sighed. "And the first person I wanted to call was Gii…but I didn't because I knew he probably wouldn't answer his phone."

Libby put an arm around him.

"Oh, Takumi," she said. He laid his head on her shoulder. He started feeling sorry for himself again, but then quickly dispelled those thoughts. He sat up and grabbed the pen and notebook.

"No," he said. "I'm not going to give up on him. He may have chosen friends over a relationship before, but I'm going to break that cycle."

"Wha….." Libby started to ask.

"I'll tell you everything later. Peter asked me if he was worth it and I told him yes. I'm going to prove to Gii that I'm not going anywhere and he can have it all."

"Wow, you really do have it bad. I've never seen you like this over someone before."

Takumi looked his friend in the eye. "Swear to God, Lib. I never have felt this way before. I can see myself spending the rest of my life with him."

Libby hugged him tightly. "Don't tell me that."

She tapped on the notebook. "Tell him."

With that, she got up, grabbed her bag and went off to her room.


	5. Chapter 5

5

Takumi quickly grew frustrated again.

The words simply wouldn't come to him. He got up, paced around the room and sat down again. Absentmindedly, he began doodling on the paper. Then it hit him. He knew the perfect thing to do. He went in his room, took out his drawing pad and pencils, and started to draw.

.

.

.

.

.

Gii had been back at work full time for almost a week; while he was getting done what needed to be done, his heart wasn't in it. His boss, Allen, had been great about letting him take time off (he had more than enough personal time accrued), but Gii knew he was beginning to push his luck.

He hated leaving Iko home alone, but his Mom swore that she'd check on him. Iko had taken a leave of absence from the firm, but was due to return in two weeks.

He tried to focus on the piles of paper on his desk, but the words just seemed to blur.

When he heard a knock on the door, he assumed it was Missy. "I told you to leave me alone."

"Sorry…not going to do that," a very familiar voice said.

Gii looked up and saw the one person he wasn't expecting.

"Takumi," he said. "Shouldn't you be at work?"

Takumi leaned on the frame of the office door. "I told Peter I had some personal business to take care of this morning."

"Oh," Gii said softly, still confused as to why Takumi was there. "I didn't think you'd want to see me again after the other night."

Takumi walked into the office and stood at the side of Gii's desk. Gii noticed he had a package with him.

"Why?" Takumi asked. "Because we had a fight? All couples have fights sometimes."

"But…."

Takumi waved him off. "Yeah, we said some things we shouldn't have….but I don't recall either of us saying it was over between us."

Gii covered his face with his hand. "Takumi, I can't deal with this right now. Why are you here?"

"Just to give you this," he said and handed Gii the package in his hand.

"What's this?"

"Open it," Takumi instructed.

Gii tore off the plain paper to reveal a nicely framed black pencil drawing. The two of them surrounded by their friends, including Iko and Mari holding hands drawn in dark pencil.

"Wow," he said. "You drew this?"

"Yeah. My way of letting you know I'm still here for you."

"This is amazing," Gii said, tracing a finger over the artwork through the glass. "I don't know what to say."

"You don't have to say anything. I know you are still having a tough time with everything and I wanted to try and cheer you up." Takumi shifted from on one foot to the other.

"Thanks. It means a lot." He paused. "Really."

Takumi gave him a small smile. "You're welcome." He turned. "I need to get to work."

"Wait," Gii said and pushed back on his chair.

He came around the desk and enveloped Takumi in a tight embrace. Takumi wrapped his arms around his back and Gii was reminded of how perfectly their bodies flushed against each other.

They broke apart and gazed at each other for several moments.

"I still love you," Takumi said through watery eyes, then turned and walked out the door.

Gii picked up the drawing again. He'd seen Takumi's drawings before, raw, untamed comic characters, but this was portrait like. In the centre was him and Takumi, hands clasped, bodies facing forward, but heads turned towards each other.

Takumi had entitled the piece 'For each other.'

Gii shut the office door, sat in his chair and broke down.

Half a box of tissues later, Gii had finally composed himself. He needed to talk with someone and when he picked up the phone his fingers automatically dialled Iko's number. He wasn't surprised when his mother answered.

"Hi," he said. "How's Iko today?"

"It's a good day. We're going to West End Day Care. He has to sign a new contract. They held the spot for Abby."

"Great! I know that is the only place Mari trusted to take care of her."

"She went to school with Julia Siletti, the director."

"Oh yeah, I think I remember her saying that."

"Now, what's wrong you?" Betty asked.

"Nothing. What makes you ask?"

"Oh, Gii, I can tell when one of my boys is upset."

Gii sniffed and grabbed a tissue. "Takumi stopped by on his way to work this morning. But I really want to talk with Iko about it. Could you get him please?"

"Only if you promise to tell me later."

"I will. I just want to talk to Iko right now."

Just then Iko walked in carrying his daughter. "Who's on the phone?"

"Gii. He wants to talk to you. Here," she handed him the phone. "I'll trade you. Hand over my granddaughter."

Abby was wide awake and smiling. Betty stepped into the other room singing to the baby.

"Hey," Iko said into the phone.

"Bro, I need your help," Gii said.

"I'm kind of busy today…,"Iko said absently.

"Please," Gii begged. "Takumi stopped by here this morning and I'm a mess. I…."

He was nearly in tears again.

"Hey, hey," Iko said, putting aside his own feelings for a moment. "I'd love to help, but I don't think I'd be the best company right now."

Gii took a deep breath. "I haven't been so great either. But I've been thinking this morning. Takumi stopped by the gym. He gave me a present. I want you to see it."

"Stop by after work then."

Gii thought for a moment. "How about you come to my place? I'll grill us some steaks."

"I don't know….Abby."

"I'm sure your Mom and Dad will watch her. And a change of scenery will do you good."

Iko actually laughed. "Like your place is a big change of scenery."

"Okay. It isn't. But one step at a time, bro. We'll get through this together."

"Iko…we need to go," Betty called.

"I hear Mom beckoning," Gii said. "Come over at seven."

"Okay," Iko said. "See you then."


	6. Chapter 6

6

The two friends sat on the terrace tearing into the meat.

"Your Mom is going to grill you when you get home," Gii said.

"I know," Iko agreed. "Hey, thanks for getting me out of the house. Well, I was out signing the contract."

"No problem. How did all that go?"

"Fine. I'm really impressed with the place. One less thing to worry about." Iko sighed. "Although, it's a big step. In a lot of ways. Never planned on being a single dad. I think I'm okay, and then I'm not. Seriously…I need to start getting out more. Maybe it's good I'm going back to work. Get my mind working again. And everything in the house reminds me of Mari."

"Maybe you should think about moving," Gii suggested.

"No."

"O—kay."

"Her mark is everywhere here, too." Iko motioned to the inside of Gii's home. "She designed your place, too. You aren't going to move."

"She wasn't my wife."

Iko's hand tightened around his fork, his nails digging into his palm. Gii watched as rage and hurt flooded his eyes and flinched visibly from the sight. Instantly Iko's eyes softened.

"Sorry," he said, placing the fork back down onto his plate.

"I am, too," Gii said. "I shouldn't have said that."

He pushed his plate away. "You finished?"

Iko stared at his half eaten plate. "Yeah. This is really good though. I just…."

"I know. I haven't been eating much either. I've lost ten pounds since…."

"I've lost fifteen," Iko admitted.

They looked at each other.

"We can't go on like this, Iko," Gii said.

"I know. And Mom…she'll never say it, but she's so stressed out." He paused. "I'm going to join that support group she suggested. I can't be like this when I get back to the office."

"And there's Abby," Gii said, as if Iko needed reminding.

"You're right. She's lost her mother. I need to be there for her." He closed his eyes for a moment then pushed his chair back. "And I will make sure she knows how amazing her mother is….was."

He wiped a tear forming in his eye. "I really need to get used to talking about her in the past tense."

"We all do, buddy."

Gii stood and picked up his plate. "Let's get this stuff inside. I want to show you the drawing Takumi did."

After cleaning up, Iko went and sat on the sofa while Gii went into his room to get the drawing. He idly leafed through a magazine while waiting. He tossed it onto the floor when Gii returned to the room and took the framed drawing from Gii's outstretched hand.

"This is incredible," Iko said as he looked at Takumi's artwork. He moved the frame around and glanced at the drawing from several angles. "Takumi is really talented. Did he have photos or did he draw this from memory?"

"I don't know." Gii answered.

Iko fingered the corner of the frame. "Gii, do I need to knock some sense into you?"

Gii had a confused look on his face. "This guy loves you and isn't going to ask anything more from you except to love him back."

He put the drawing on the coffee table.

"What are you saying? I don't-"

Iko covered Gii's mouth with his hand. "Don't overanalyze. It's simple. Do you want to be with Takumi or not?"

"Yes, but—"

"No," Iko interrupted him. "No buts. I've seen you do this before. Putting everyone else first instead of yourself. Be selfish for once. Go call him and make things right."

"What? Now?"

"Why not?"

"I can't….I need time to think."

Iko groaned. "God you're stubborn."

He pinched the bridge of his nose. "Look, I'll be fine. Mari's gone. I'm finally beginning to accept that. There's nothing I could have done to save her. But you can make this work with Takumi."

"You…"

"Stop it!" Iko said a bit louder than necessary. "Gii…shit happens. I could argue how unfair it is that Mari died so young. I've been through the mad stage of grief. You've been incredible to me the past few weeks. I can never repay you for being there for me when I needed you. But you can still be with the person you love."

He picked the drawing off the table. "Here's the evidence. You two, together with your friends supporting you."

Gii couldn't argue with him. Not when he was in lawyer mode. He knew Iko probably wasn't finished, so he kept quiet.

"It's apparent to me that Takumi understands the importance of family," Iko continued. "Think about how much time he's spent with us. And how many times have you told me you can't wait to do things with Abby like you have with the other kids. Jesus, Gii, what's it going to take to get through to you?"

Gii was nearly in tears. He hated being this emotional. "I just never thought I deserved to have it all."

Iko shook his head, and then pulled his brother into an embrace. "Everyone does, little brother."

Gii let the tears flow. Iko didn't let go until he felt Gii stop shaking and let his head fall onto the back of the sofa.

"Thanks," he said.

"Anytime," Iko assured him.

Gii tried on a small smile and then looked at his watch. "Shit. It's after eleven already."

"Don't worry about it. I already told them I'd probably stay here tonight."

"But how did you figure that?"

"I know how you get, Gii."

"Oh. Yeah. The overly emotional gay friend."

Iko softly punched Gii on the shoulder. "Stop it. You're one of the strongest people I know."

This time Gii's grin was much larger.

"Hey, what about being away from Abby?" he asked.

"She'll be fine. This is important for both of us. That little girl needs her father and her uncle to get their shit together. And if this is what it takes, I'm willing. How about you?"

Gii didn't think he could admire him any more than he did at that moment.

"I'm in," he finally said.


	7. Chapter 7

7

The next morning Gii felt better than he had in quite some time. He and Iko talked for another hour the previous night and it had been productive for both of them. Gii had planned on spending the day coming up with a way to make it up to Takumi and proving his love.

When he got to work, however, he learned the other manager was out with the flu and he'd have to put in extra hours for a few days while she recuperated. Before he knew it, Friday had arrived.

He'd planned on calling Takumi and attempt to set something up for the weekend but just has he picked up the phone, the other line rang and it was the Doug the weekend manager asking for the day off. "Family emergency" is what he said and Gii didn't hesitate to say fine.

Doug was a good employee and Gii knew he wouldn't call out unless it was a true emergency. So much for making plans, Gii thought.

When he finally got home that night, Gii could hear the phone ringing even before he opened the door.

"Hey," Iko said. "Did I interrupt something good?"

"No, I just got home."

"You usually don't work this late. What's going on?"

Gii exhaled. "Kate is out with the flu. And then today Doug called out. I'm going to need to go in tomorrow."

"Shit." Then Iko laughed. "Tough being the boss, isn't it?"

"Shut up." He toed his shoes off then went to the refrigerator and grabbed a beer. "So why are you calling?"

"Well, I was going to ask if you patched things up with Takumi, but I guess you haven't had the time."

"You guessed right. I was going to call him today and hopefully make some plans but before I could Doug called."

"Sorry. Hey, look, Anthony's here and we're watching the game. Why don't you come over?"

"Thanks, but I'm too tired. I've got to rework some schedules and turn them in tomorrow."

"Maybe next week then? We can catch up. And hopefully you'll have good news."

"Yeah. Hopefully. How is Anthony? I still can't believe Lynne turned out to be such a bitch. He's better off without her."

"He'll be okay. It's been a shitty couple of months, hasn't it?"

Gii took a swig of the beer. "Yeah, it really has."

"I've done a lot of thinking this week and even more so since last night and I realize Mari wouldn't want me to live in the past. I've got a daughter to raise and I need to be around for her. Abby is not going to lose both her parents. And you have a great guy who wants to be with you. You and Takumi are perfect for each other. Mari would want you to be happy, too."

Gii was glad Iko couldn't see how emotional he was getting. He covered the mouthpiece and took a deep breath. He leaned back against the counter.

"Gii, are you still there?" He heard him ask.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm here." He closed his eyes. "Takumi is pretty great, isn't he?"

"Don't tell me, tell him that. Look, I've got to go. I want to get back to the game."

"Tell Anthony I said hey."

"I will. And call Takumi." Iko hung up before he could answer.

Gii was dragging at work the next day. By ten o'clock he was already on his second iced coffee. He had laid in bed awake half the night thinking of Takumi and what to say to him.

Takumi also had a serious side. Many nights, after what he knew now was the best sex he ever had, he and Takumi would talk for hours about everything and anything. It hit Gii that he had connected with Takumi like he had with no other person before. He would never meet another person better suited for him than Takumi.

He couldn't let him slip away.

The first chance he had, he was going to make that call to say and do whatever it took to make things right between them. He was able to leave earlier than planned and the thought of perhaps salvaging some of the day had him smiling the entire drive home.

He ran up the stairs to the second floor and dropped his keys while attempting to unlock the door. He cursed as he picked them up and finally got inside.

He quickly dialled Takumi's cell number but it wasn't Takumi who answered. "Gii? It's Libby.

This is so weird; I was just going to call you. There's been an accident. Takumi and I are at the hospital."

"Oh my god! How bad is it? Is he okay? Which hospital?" Gii knew he was rambling.

"Gii…," Libby tried to interject.

"He's got to be all right. I can't go through this again. I knew I should have…." He couldn't finish the thought.

"Calm down," Libby said in a soothing voice. "He'll be okay. Just a broken wrist and a mild concussion. He's down in x-ray right now. We're at St. James."

"I'll be there as soon as I can. What happened?" he asked as he grabbed his keys and walked out of the building.

"We were riding bikes at the park. His bike got a flat tire; he lost his balance and flipped over the handlebars. Landed in the rock garden."

"Oh God. Look, I'm in my car. I'm on my way."

Gii couldn't get to the hospital fast enough. He knew he was probably breaking several traffic laws, but he didn't care. Although he did believe Libby when she said Takumi was fine, until he saw him with his own eyes he wouldn't be able to dismiss his fear of the worst. If only he would have called earlier to make plans this wouldn't have happened. Those brief seconds when he thought he had lost Takumi forever would plague him for some time.

He needed Takumi in his life and he vowed to never let anything come between them again. By the time he pulled into the parking lot he was a nervous wreck. His heart was pounding in his chest and he practically sprinted across the lot to the Emergency Room entrance.

Gii quickly spotted Libby and the others sitting in the uncomfortable chairs chatting quietly between themselves.

"You got here fast," Libby observed, as she stood to give Gii a hug.

"Traffic wasn't bad," Gii said. Libby could tell he was lying. "How long have you been waiting?"

She looked at her watch. "About forty five minutes."

She squeezed Gii's arm in affection. Nobody even acknowledged that he and Takumi had been apart for the last month.

Gii inwardly thanked Takumi's friends for this small gesture.

"Really, he's fine," she assured Gii.

"I can't help it. I'm worried," Gii said sadly. "I want to see him. I've been a little preoccupied lately. I need to make it up to him."

"We know," Arlene said softly. "You'll see. Everything will work out for you two."

"I hope so."


	8. Chapter 8

8

Libby pulled Gii's arm to get his attention. "Listen to me, Gii. I've known Takumi for a long time and I can tell you he's never cared about someone the way he cares about you. It's terrible what happened to your friend but I want you to know that Takumi has been miserable to live with the past couple weeks."

She stood back and looked closely at Gii. "Looks like you've been miserable, too."

She doesn't miss a thing, Gii thought.

Gii shut his eyes. "You're right. I'm not here because Libby called. I was calling Takumi to try and make things right between us. I know I've been shutting him out recently but I know for sure he's the one. I love him and I'm willing to do whatever it takes to get him back."

"Well," Libby drawled. "I saw the drawing. I don't think it'll be that difficult."

Gii smiled.

"He's fine," the doctor said as she approached them. "It's only a distal radius fracture. He'll need a cast for about a month, but the bones should heal completely."

Everyone began talking at once.

"Can I see him now?" asked Gii.

"I can take you all back for five minutes but then he's only allowed one person with him. Doctor Lucas should be releasing him within the next hour." She indicated for them to follow her.

When they got to the bed Takumi was sitting on, she pulled the curtain for what little privacy there was to be had. Takumi was sitting on the bed, legs dangling off the side. The cast on his left arm wrapped around his thumb and went almost up to his elbow. He had a few minor scrapes on his face and knees.

I know this isn't how you planned on spending your Saturday afternoon," Takumi said.

"Hey, Lib," Takumi said before she stepped out. "What about our bikes?"

Libby turned to him. "Oh. Taken care of. Ramona and your neighbor Ed took care of all that."

"Good," he replied.

Libby leaned in and whispered to Takumi. "I didn't call Gii. He was calling you. Just wanted you to know."

"Hi," Gii said.

"Hi," Takumi said back.

A few more moments drifted by.

"I'm really happy to see you," Gii finally said. "When Libby said you had an accident, I have to admit, I thought the worst at first."

"Don't…," Takumi started.

"I couldn't bear that thought," Gii interrupted. "I'm so glad you're okay."

"It was my own fault," Takumi admitted. "I practically dragged Libby out today. I wanted a distraction for a few hours. All I've wanted to do the past couple days was call you."

Gii shut his eyes.

"I wasn't paying attention," Takumi continued. "I veered off the path."

Gii hesitantly placed a hand on Takumi's leg, hoping it was okay. Takumi looked down, but didn't remove Gii's hand.

"This is my entire fault," Gii said, sadness in his voice.

Takumi put his good hand over Gii's.

"No it isn't," he said. "This is all on me. It was my idea to go for a bike ride."

"What exactly happened? I haven't had time to get all the details."

Takumi briefly told him how he asked Libby to go for a ride at the local park to get out of the apartment and clear his head. It was working until they reached the mini concert pavilion where Takumi and Gii had gone to listen to a string quartet the weekend before Takumi went to a job interview, one he got. Lost in thought, Takumi didn't realize the tire had gone flat until he lost his balance. The next thing he knew he was face down in the rock garden and pain was shooting through his wrist and head.

"Oh God," Gii said. "It is my fault."

"Stop it," Takumi scolded. He yanked Gii's shirt and pulled him in between his legs. He leaned up, pulling Gii down and kissed him hard.

Gii gently pushed away from him. "Takumi, don't," he said. "You have a concussion. You've got to be in pain."

"Not that much," Takumi replied, putting his hand on the back of Gii's neck pulling him close and kissing him again. This time Gii put his arms on Takumi's shoulders and returned the kiss.

Both Takumi and Gii had hopeful smiles on their faces. Gii stepped out of between Takumi's legs and stood by the side of the bed at a safe distance. Still, Takumi took his hand and entwined it with his. Takumi didn't want the fragile connection they had just found to break.

Doctor Lucas stepped in announcing, "Here are your discharge papers, Takumi. I see you have someone to take you home. Be sure to make an appointment with your own doctor as soon as you can so he can follow up on the concussion. You'll also have to come back here and see Dr. Powell, the orthopaedic surgeon here who set your wrist to see how the bones are healing. They may change the cast, depending on what the x-rays show. Then you'll probably need a wrist brace for a few weeks."

"Jesus," Takumi said, shaking his head.

"I'll make sure he does what he's supposed to do, Doctor," Gii said. He let go of Takumi's hand so Takumi could sign the documents.

"Good," Doctor Lucas said. "Here's a script for prescription strength ibuprofen. Take them if you need to."

.

.

Finally, just the two of them, and each was relieved for different reasons. Takumi was glad to be leaving the hospital and Gii was thrilled that Takumi didn't hesitate over where to spend his recuperation.

Gii helped Takumi into the car, then hurried around to get going.

"You ready?" he asked.

"Yes," Takumi replied.

They stopped at the pharmacy to fill the prescription despite Takumi's insistence that he really wouldn't need them. When they finally reached Gii's place, it was almost 8:00.

"Do you want me to set you up on the sofa or the bed?" Gii asked when they were inside.

"Sofa first. I'm hungry," Takumi realized. "Do you have stuff to make a sandwich or something?"

"I'm sure I can put something together."

After eating and some television, Takumi was dozing on and off.

Gii stood up. "Come on. Let's get you to bed."

Takumi moved too quickly and gave a slight hiss. He grimaced and reached out as if to grab onto something. Gii caught him as he teetered.

"Takumi?" Gii asked, very concerned.

Takumi rubbed his forehead. "Stood up too fast. Just a little dizzy."

"Are you sure that's all it is?" Gii was getting nervous.

"Yes, I'm fine."

"You should take one of the pain pills."

"I'm sure the regular stuff will be fine."

"I think…."

Takumi shook free of Gii and stepped away. "Stop hovering, Gii. I know how I'm feeling."

"I'm just trying to help." Gii backed up.

Takumi shut his eyes tightly, and rubbed his forehead again. He exhaled slowly. "Sorry I snapped. I'm really glad you came to the hospital today."

He took a step towards Gii and put a hand on his shoulder.

Gii covered Takumi's hand with his. "Libby didn't call me. I was calling your phone."

"I know."

"And you didn't tell me?" Gii let go of Takumi's hand and shook it off his shoulder.

"Well, there really hasn't been time." Takumi was getting irritated, but he knew it was from all that had happened that day. He really didn't want to argue with Gii tonight.

"Look Takumi," Gii was saying. "I was calling to see if we could get together. I've got so much to make up to you. If I'd only called you earlier in the day…"

Takumi took a breath. "Drop the what ifs. Nothing we can do about it now." He yawned, and then rubbed his head another time. "I've got a headache. I know we need to talk but I can't right now. I just want to take something and get some sleep."

"Sure thing," Gii said. "We can talk tomorrow."


	9. Chapter 9

9

They walked to the bedroom, not touching, the unresolved tension between them as taut as a wire.

Gii went to the bathroom to get the pills and some water, while Takumi managed to strip down to his shorts and crawl into the bed.

"Do you want some space? I can sleep on the sofa," Gii said after he'd given Takumi the pills and water. Please say I can at least sleep in the bed with you, Gii silently prayed.

Takumi put the cup on the nightstand and then tossed the comforter in invitation.

"No," he answered. "I want you here. I miss sleeping with you."

"But your arm…"

"We'll manage."

Gii took off his pants and got into the bed, staying a safe distance from Takumi. Takumi had turned on his right side and put the injured arm in front of him.

"Gii," he called. "Get over here."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I want to feel you next to me."

 _One small step towards healing, Gii thought._ The wretchedness of the day was washed away with those words.

The first thing Takumi realized when he awoke the next morning was that his head wasn't pounding anymore. He'd never let Gii know how bad the pressure had been. The next thing he noticed was Gii staring at him, lying on his side, elbow propping his head.

"Morning," Gii said with a smile.

"Good morning," Takumi yawned.

"How's the headache?"

"Gone."

"Good. What about your arm? And the rest of you?"

"Stiff. And not in a good way."

They both laughed. Takumi would be okay. His sense of humour had never left him.

Takumi smelled the unmistakable scent of coffee. "You made coffee already? How long have you been up?"

"Only about half an hour. I'll go pour you a mug."

On his way back to the bedroom, Gii ran into Takumi.

"Whoa," he said. "What are you doing out of bed? You need to rest."

"Oh come on, Gii. You of all people should know I need to work these sore muscles so they don't get stiff."

Gii shrugged. "That's true."

After sitting down and taking a few sips of the coffee, Takumi finally spoke. "Look, Gii, I know you and your friends have been through the wringer lately, but I was pissed that you shut

me out."

"Ah….," Gii began.

"No," Takumi interrupted. "Let me finish. It finally dawned on me that this is what you do. You broke things off with Tom when your dad had his heart attack."

"Things were bad with us anyway. We were already on the verge of splitting up." Gii was feeling a bit defensive.

Takumi wasn't going to let him try to explain away his pattern. "That's beside the point. Then Stewart got a job offer in Florida and you refuse to go with him because you want to stay near your friends. Now you've essentially been ignoring me since Mari died. You keep putting your friends before your own relationships."

Takumi was past being angry at Gii, but he still had to let this all out.

Gii closed his eyes. He placed both coffee mugs on the table. "You're right. Guys have dumped me before because I put my friends before them at times. I could say there were other issues too, but the biggest one has been that my family is really important to me. Hell, we all still live within fifteen minutes of each other. But I'm never going to apologize for being close to my friends."

He asserted each point with a point of his finger. He thought for a brief second Takumi would simply get up and leave at any minute. Which was the last thing he wanted. He hoped and prayed this relationship could be saved. Then his prayer was answered.

"You shouldn't have to."

Gii slid back onto the sofa in relief.

"Thank you," he said. "I have been an idiot because the whole time I was dealing with my grief I'd forgotten that you are the same way with your friends. Can you ever forgive me?"

Takumi could tell Gii was truly sorry. "I admit I was mad at you for awhile, but not anymore. And I forgave you days ago."

Gii was confused for a moment. Takumi had no qualms about them sleeping in the same bed last night, and then he remembered the other olive branch.

"The drawing," Gii finally said. His heart ached with love for this man whom he thought he lost forever. "That was the most incredible thing anyone has ever done for me."

Takumi smiled and let Gii continue. "I had Iko over for dinner the night you gave me that. He finally helped me see how blind I had been. Oh, and he joined a support group. He's only been to one meeting and said it's helping already."

He shook his head. "He's the one whose wife died then he ended up helping me."

"He's a good guy. I'm glad he's getting help." Takumi scooted a bit closer to Gii. "If we can't count on each other in a crisis, a tragedy, or anything else, we're not going to last."

"You're right." Gii put his arm on the back of the sofa, but not touching Takumi. One step at a time. Repair the relationship first, and then deal with the intimacy. "I should have trusted that you'd be there for me. You have to know that it was never anything against you personally. Iko made me see the pattern I'd been developing. The safe bubble of my friends is where I knew I'd always be loved. That's why all my previous relationships failed. I need to be close to my friends and no one ever got that."

Takumi looked at Gii, raw emotion in his eyes. "I do."

"I know. And that's why I feel so horrible. You deserve to be treated better than that. I can never repay you for sticking by me."

Takumi put a hand on Gii's thigh. "Just love me. That's all I want."

Gii covered Takumi's hand. "I do love you. We're going to get through this, aren't we?"

"Yeah…we are."

After a few moments of silence, Gii spoke again. It felt wonderful talking like this. He'd never felt closer to anyone than he did right now. He had finally found what he was looking for, and it was all in the form of the man sitting next to him. "I seriously was going to call you the day after you gave me the drawing, but work was crazy. Doug called out…I had to fill in until I could rearrange the schedule."

"I wondered why I didn't hear from you. I thought about calling you, but Libby kept telling me not to."

Gii half smiled. "When I finally did get a chance to call, she answered your phone."

"Sorry about that."

"I have to tell you, for a split second I thought the worst. I couldn't bear it if I never saw you again. I know now you totally get me. I never thought I'd meet someone who completely understands the bond I have with my friends and how I'll never let anymore break it."

"Gii, you are who you are because of your friends. And that's the man I fell in love with."

"Oh, Takumi," he said, tears forming in his eyes. "It's that simple? We're back together?"

Takumi looked at him quizzically. "I don't remember ever breaking up. I never stopped loving you."

Gii shifted and pulled Takumi into a loose embrace. "I love you, too. So very much."

He tightened his grip. Takumi's intake of breath caused him to let go.

"Oh, God, I'm sorry. Are you okay?" Worry spread across Gii's face.

"I'll be fine. Maybe I should take one of those painkillers."

"I'll get you one." Gii stood.

Takumi grabbed his hand to stop him. "Then we better call our friends and let them know we're okay."

Gii grinned. "I can't believe they haven't called us already."


	10. Chapter 10

10

They spent the rest of the day taking it easy and doing a lot more talking.

They knew there would be challenging times in the future but they vowed to be honest with each other and never take the other for granted. Communication was key and they knew now that talking things out up front would prevent the kind of misery they'd each been through the past few weeks.

Takumi was able to be squeezed in at his doctor's office Tuesday morning and afterwards he and Gii went out to lunch.

"Feels good to be out and about again," Takumi said. He was a lot more mobile now and hadn't needed a pain pill in over a day. As they ate their sandwiches, he remembered something he hadn't told Gii. "I forgot to tell you we scored this huge account."

"That's fantastic!" Gii said.

Takumi then told him how he messed up at work, Peter saving his ass, and the award submission.

Gii couldn't stop grinning. "I'm so proud of you."

"Thanks. I won't win, but it's great to have my work recognized."

"You're a brilliant artist, Takumi. Don't let anyone say otherwise." He paused. "Ooh, now I know what to get you for your birthday."

"What?"

Gii feigned shock. "And ruin the surprise?"

"Seriously Gii. I'm just glad we worked through our issues. All I want for my birthday is to spend the day with you." He took a bite of his sandwich. "Oh, and for you to come with me to Ramona's on Friday night for PBGN."

"What's that?"

"It's this tradition, Ramona, Maggie and I started a long time ago. We get together the night before each of our birthday and play stupid games. 'Pre Birthday Game Night' we call it."

Gii laughed. "That's brilliant."

He took Takumi's hand in his. "Yeah, was just the three of us at first, then when they each got serious with someone, we included them. This will be the first time I'm bringing someone."

 _Oh god, Gii thought_. He was so choked up he wasn't sure if he could speak. "Wow. Means a lot to me that you are including me in this."

Takumi looked T square in the eye. "Because Gii….you're The One."

The revelation took Gii's breath away and left him speechless.

Both Takumi and Gii returned to work on Wednesday and Gii understood that Takumi wanted to go to his apartment and spend time with Libby. They agreed to resume their Wednesday dinner dates the following week.

Friday after work, Takumi let himself into Gii's place and it took some convincing before Gii accepted the fact that he felt like himself again, barring the cast on his arm. They walked the two streets over in the development to Romana's place. It was a beautiful fall evening and they wanted to enjoy the weather before the cold of winter set in.

When they arrived at Ramona's, Peter drew Gii aside and warned him, "Just go with the flow. Don't even try and referee."

Several hours later, after silly board games and at least a dozen games of UNO where the rules constantly changed and at one point Gii thought blood would be spilled, the friends declared the evening over. As Ramona was ushering everyone out the door, Takumi was still wound up. "Just wait until your PBGN next month, Ramona! Revenge will be mine!"

"Goodnight, Takumi," Ramona said, practically shutting the door in his face.

Takumi turned to Gii and gave him the once over.

"You survived unscathed. One day I'll have to tell you what happened to Peter his first time. Don't worry," he said, gauging the look on Gii's face. "No calls to 911 were made."

Gii just shook his head. He had seen them at their worst now. And he was happy to have been included in the festivities. "Thanks again for inviting me tonight."

"You're a part of my life now. And that means you're stuck with my friends, too."

Before Gii could say anything, Maggie called from outside the building. "You guys want a ride home?"

Takumi caught up with his sister. "Nah. We're going to walk."

"Are you sure? It's almost midnight."

"Certain. No one is going to turn into a pumpkin or anything."

"Okay..and you need to get your fairy tales right." She turned to walk away and muttered "You'd think my gay friend would get fairy tales right."

"I heard that!" Takumi called.

Maggie laughed. "Happy Birthday," she called back and got into the car with her husband.

Gii and Takumi took their time walking back to Gii's place. When they were halfway

through the tree path, Gii stopped and pulled Takumi close to him. "It has to be past midnight now. Happy Birthday."

He leaned in for a gentle kiss. Gii was ready to resume their sex life and he was hoping Takumi would get the hint.

"Thanks," Takumi said and wrapped his arms around Gii. "This is already the best birthday ever."

Gii softly caressed the side of Takumi's face. "When we get back home, I want to show you how happy I am to have you in my life. I'm going to show you how much I love you."

Takumi didn't answer verbally; he simply took Gii's hand and quickened their pace.

 _Guess we both want the same thing, Gii reasoned._

Seven minutes later, after fumbling with the lock and practically falling through the door, jackets were on the floor, shoes were kicked off and they were on Gii's bed wrapped up in each other's arms.

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.Epilogue – New Year's Eve

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Gii adjusted his tie for the fifth time in the last ten minutes. He really hated wearing suits but tonight it was necessary. After Mari's death, her parents had joined and become active in the local chapter of the Brain Aneurysm Foundation.

They had helped organize tonight's New Years Eve banquet. They quickly filled their table for ten with April and her date, he and Takumi, Iko and Iko's friend Anthony. Iko and Anthony had been helping each other with the loss of their spouses. Different circumstances for each of them, but a loss nonetheless.

Gii thought about his own relationship with Takumi and how he had almost thrown it away. Takumi's perseverance in not giving up on him was something Gii hadn't expected and he'd be forever grateful for that.

The day of Takumi's bike accident solidified Gii's realization that they needed to be there for each other. The superheroes drawing Takumi made would forever be displayed in his home as a reminder of that no matter what life tossed at them. Takumi wasn't going to be anywhere but by his side. And he'd never leave Takumi's.

Since they'd been back together, things had been great. They had their spats, but nothing they couldn't, or wouldn't work through. Sometime in the New Year, Gii decided, he wanted to ask Takumi a serious question.

He just had to wait for the right moment.

He looked at his watch again. Did only five minutes pass since he last looked? Takumi was due to arrive any moment now. He fiddled with his tie another time and groaned in frustration. How does Takumi deal with this every day? Just then he heard a noise at the door and a key jiggling in the lock.

Gii grabbed the suit jacket and was putting it on as Takumi entered.

"Hey," he said with a smile.

Takumi stopped where he was. He scrutinized Gii's appearance. In the black suit, crisp white shirt and maroon tie, he couldn't suppress his appreciation.

"Damn," he said.

"What?" Gii asked. "Is something wrong?"

He wiped the arms of the jacket. Takumi crossed the foyer into the room and stood in front of Gii.

"No," he said. "You're perfect. And dead sexy in that suit. How am I supposed to keep my hands off you all night?"

Takumi kissed him, took his overcoat off, and then tossed it on the sofa.

"You're looking pretty hot yourself," Gii commented. Takumi wore a grey pinstriped suit with a dark shirt and an equally dark tie.

Next thing Gii knew, he was being pinned against the wall with his boyfriends tongue shoved down his throat. Much as he didn't want Takumi to stop, Gii pushed him away.

"Takumi, we can't," he said breathlessly. "My friends and the Morrison's are expecting us."

Takumi bit his lip.

"I know….I know," he almost whined. He rubbed his forehead. "I couldn't help myself. This is only the second time I've seen you in a suit you know."

"When was…..oh." Gii remembered the last time he had a suit on was at Mari's funeral.

"Yeah." Takumi grinned. "Wouldn't have been appropriate if I jumped you then."

"Not really." Gii smiled and both knew that even though Gii still missed her more often than not, she would have wanted everyone to enjoy life. Tonight was a way to honour her memory and celebrate her life.

Gii grabbed Takumi's arm and pushed up the jacket sleeve.

"Did you remember…yes, you did." He'd given Takumi a pair of gold cufflinks as a Christmas gift.

"I still can't believe you spent so much on these," Takumi said, as he fingered the jewellery.

"You should talk," Gii countered. "Booking a weekend away for us…..three months from now."

"I told you that place needs to be booked way in advance. And that's when I can finally take time off work." He paused. "Wait. You're messing with me, aren't you?"

Gii grinned and shook his head.

"I know it'll still be cold," Takumi continued. "But I can't wait to walk along the beach with you."

"I know. Me too." Gii kissed Takumi and squeezed his hand. "But for now…"

He went to the closet and retrieved his own overcoat. "Just wait until we get back tonight. I promise you we won't leave the bed until it's time to go to the party tomorrow."

"I like the sound of that," Takumi agreed. He picked up his coat and put it on.

"Tickets?" He asked.

"Oh, right," Gii went to the other room and came back with the cards. Takumi went to open the door but Gii put a hand on his to stop him. "One more thing. Please make sure I'm the first person you kiss at the stroke of midnight."

Takumi looked at Gii and smiled. He cupped Gii's face with his hands and said, "I wouldn't have it any other way."

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As I said before, this is not my verse and I am sorry if it was not appreciated. I only saw what I could find on youtube. For those of you who did read to the end, thank you. Goodbye


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